Embodiments described herein relate generally to devices, systems, and methods for measuring a quantity of a liquid disposed in a container, and in particular to measuring a volume or number of doses remaining in a drug delivery device.
Many chronic disease patients are prescribed medications that need to be self-administered, administered by a caregiver, or administered by an automated or semi-automated delivery system using injection pens or similar drug delivery devices. For example, patients diagnosed with Type I or II diabetes need to regularly check their blood glucose levels and self-administer an appropriate dose of insulin using an injection pen. In order to monitor the efficacy of the medication, dose information must be recorded. The process of manually logging dose information, particularly in an uncontrolled setting, is tedious and error prone. Patients often forget to log the dose information when administering medicine. In addition, many such patients may be minors or elderly who cannot efficiently and/or accurately track the dose information.
Incomplete dosage records hinder the ability of the patient to self-manage disease conditions and prevent caretakers from adjusting care plans through behavioral insights. Lack of adherence to target dosage schedules for injectable medicine may result in an increased need for critical care, which results in a significant increase in health care costs in countries around the world.
Thus, a need exists for better technological aids to assist patients in improving their ability to self-manage disease treatment. Such aids not only improve patient awareness and education about their health, but also assist caregivers in better monitoring patient health. In particular, there is a need for systems, devices, and methods that facilitate data acquisition on patient behavior and that allow that data to be used to reduce the incidence of hospital visits (e.g., re-admission), as well as to inform and educate patients, care providers, family and financial service providers.